Employee Relations

Labor unions represent workers interests and the collective bargaining process provides a way to manage the conflict (Noe, 2003). More than ever, union employees have come to see unionizing as a way to achieve an

This essay will look at various methods that have been used in the historical and modern context to give employees ‘voice’ which include Voluntarism, Trade Unions (TU’s) and

(1) Require the National Work Relations Board ("NLRB") guarantee a union based upon a dominant part card check (rather than ensuring a union strictly when it gets a lion 's share of worker votes in a mystery poll decision);

In developing a labor relations strategy, the first step is to carry out an analysis of the current status in terms of the organizational practices in labor relations and assessing whether that is compliant with the expectations as set out in the law. According to the Federal Labor Relations Agency (FLRA) it is important for all organizations to carry out an in-depth analysis of the current position before determining the need for the organization to have in place a labor relations strategy (Dean, 2009). The analysis will help an organization determine its levels of compliance with the law and how well it relates with the labor union representing their employees and thereby be in a position to develop appropriate goals for the strategy the organization chooses. In line with this, there are five key legal principles that the government has set that apply to both unionizable and non-unionizable employees of an organization. These are:

Over the last two centuries the relationship between organizations and their employees have changed as the result of interactions between the two groups and in response to changing governmental legislation. During this period, labor unions arose to advocate for workers and address the inherent power imbalance between individual workers and organizations (Thornton, 2013). In workplaces were unions represent employees, Foss (2008), defines labor relations as the “ongoing interchange between the union and the employer that identifies their common and specific interests and creates mechanism to clarify, mange, reduce and resolve conflicts over their specific interests” (p. 1). The legal framework governing the practice of labor relations is

Today, many businesses and organizations collaborate with the labor unions whether by choice or not. As generally understood the labor unions are organizations of workers acting jointly to negotiate their wages, working environment, and benefits with there employers. Like many nations globally, in the U.S. the subordinate employees are legally allowed to establish unions and engage in collective bargains with the management. Following the collective bargains there is always the establishment of the labor contract, which is a written agreement that governs the union-management relations (Workplace Fairness Organization, 2017). Though the labor relations are a common thing today and offer many benefits to the members, many people are still reluctant to join their respective labor unions.

Employers initially resisted unions as they were seen as a ‘tool of worker power’, and some countries even banned the groups all together (Baoill 2011). Although these restraints have been lifted, restrictions and guidelines have been put in place by government bodies to govern union activity; and employees internationally have the right to form unions (Baoill 2011).

These ammendents included, among other things, the introduction of a non-union/collective bargaining system in the form of Enterprise Flexibility Agreements. The intention of the 1993 Industrial Relations Reform Act, for example, was to make enterprise bargaining the main process for determining wages and other conditions of employment. Awards continued to provide effective regulation for employees who were not enjoying the benefits of enterprise bargaining, even if award wages rose slowly and fell well behind wage increases in enterprise agreements (Bray etc al, 2006). The Business Council of Australia’s strong support for enterprise bargaining and for a weakened role for arbitration tribunals gradually became the mainstream position among most Australian employers, even among those who had previously supported centralized bargaining (Thornthwaite and Sheldon, 1996). This was the first time in history, in which the unions were excluded from having any involvement in all forms of agreement in relations to employment conditions in the federal jurisdiction. It was at the time of this introduction that it became evident that these agreements would allow employers to begin to de-unionise their operations and to accelerate their move towards a non-union status.

Labor unions are groups of workers who come together to accomplish specific objectives. Gaining notoriety in the 19th century, labor unions have accomplished many achievements that have helped workers in areas such as increasing their income, improving working conditions and dispute resolution. Workers have been known to use these unions to help negotiate for the betterment of all workers. Becoming a member of a labor union requires workers to apply for membership and pay union dues. In order for labor unions to become certified there are certain steps that have to be followed. According to this week’s Lecture Hall, the National Labor Relations Act (1935) gave workers the right to create or join a union, discouraged union discrimination and created unfair labor practices.

Trade Unions are different individuals with the common interest to come together to guarantee that their interests of work place are not affected,

In the past decades, unions have stood to fall by the wayside, due to the contributing factor of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). They do not adapt to external factors, such as competition and productivity in the global economy. These factors are a problem for unionism by themselves. The current state of the NLRA has magnified their effect.

Essentially, many alternative approaches to the problems are being focused upon. Moreover, proposals such as labor relation boards should fulfill their remedial mandate by awarding remedies that fully compensate the harm caused to individual employees, collective employee interests, and the union by employer unfair labor practices committed during union organizing. Thus, this proposal requires no change to LRBs’ remedial powers, and it reduces incentives for employers to violate labour legislation. Instead, it fosters collective bargaining relationships (Slinn,

From this perspective, trade union is perceived not necessary and the role of it is creating conflict, and it is seen an unwelcome intrusion into the organization from outside competing with management for the loyalty of employees (Rose, 2004). Trade unions exist either as the result of wickedness or perverseness of individual employees, or because of a failure of management to anticipate and incorporate worker needs and concerns (Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring, 2005).

“Collective voice achieves what a lone voice could never do”. Collective representation is also the foundation of a partnership relationship between employers, employees and unions that bring positive benefits for the business (Prosser, 2001).

Besides, power imbalance between employer and employee in the workplace seems to be unavoidable. As noted by Wilkinson et al. (2014), employees are citizens who have the right to be informed and consulted; therefore, the aim of employee voice is to communicate with management and express employees’ concerns about their work situation. Nevertheless, in recent years, decreasing union density has gradually shifted the form of voice in most organisations and countries from collective and unionized channels to direct and individualized mechanisms (Wilkinson et al., 2014).